Deer & Deer Hunting Forums: White Tail Deer Hunting Forum

Have you ever taken a deer to a processor and when you go to pick up your venison they have it in a box even a 4yr old could pick up? I'm exagerating about the 4yr old picking up the box but this season I took in a nice size doe for processing and got back one box of venision. I had it cut up into chops, hamburger, and the hindquarters into chunks to later be made into jerky. I got back maybe 10-15 lbs of hamburger, at least 6-8 chunks from the hindquarters, and maybe 6 packages of chops butterflied. I also got a small slim package labeled tenderloin but I had already taken out the internal loins. Is there another location on the deer for tenderloins that I have been missing. I also had a buck processsed by this same processor and got back two boxes and plenty of meat. I just think maybe I've been ripped off. This was the first time using this processor. I think its time I took over the cutting and packaging of my deer. It's a convienence thing for me but I don't like being ripped off at $70 per deer.

It's stories like this and my own experience that led me to start processing my own deer this year. It's really a lot more simple than you think. The first thing I would recommend is buy the book they sell through this website called Gut It, Cut It, Cook It, The Deer Hunter's Guide to Processing and Preparing Venison. This book in great details outlines everything you need to do with a deer to process it yourself starting with the field dressing in the field. I processed my first deer a couple weeks ago and I was surprised how easy it is even though I wasn't as prepared as I could have been.

Get yourself a good electrice meat grinder first, that will prove to be very handy. I bought an LEM brand from Bass Pro when it was on sale, they still have some on sale now through the Christmas holiday. Do your research online before buying a meat grinder, I liked the LEM for it's metal gears, stainless parts, and 2 year warranty. I look at it this way, the grinder cost me $249 on sale. At $70 a deer you said you were paying, 4 deer amount to $280, more than paying for that meat grinder. After that every deer you process is only going to cost you a little bit in supplies to package for the freezer and other ingredients you choose to add to the venison to make things like sausage. In the end you know the meat you put in the freezer is yours and that you got every bit of it.

I have certainly felt that way before . Even when they tag your deer at the processor , I think they do all the burger together . A kid that I had been taking hunting shot a buck a couple years ago . He said he got more meat than he felt he should have gotten and wondered if he got someone elses deer . . I have arthritis in my hands . I butchered a buck that I shot on the Marine Corps birthday last year . I butchered it and got 51 pounds of meat and I am not picky about getting every little piece of meat . I took a doe that was "larger" than the buck and got a 33 pound box . The weight of the box with the meat was 33 pounds. All for $68 ! I expected at least 51 pounds or more . [:@][:@] No more processors for me . I usually butcher my own deer . Last year I got lazy and paid for it ! [:@]

I've processed my own deer my whole life. I also thoroughly enjoy teaching others how to butcher their own. The time is well worth it!

My local butcher does not process deer anymore, but he will grind and wrap the burger for me if I bring that in. I get my own back and he only charges like 50 cents a pound for the service. He's a small town butcher and I've gotten to know him really well.

catphish66, there is only one spot for the tenderloins...unless your butcher was using different terminology for a different cut of meat.

As far as the loins...terminology varies from region to region but there are backstraps and loins.

The ones you removed are what I call backstraps; you removed them from inside the carcass. There is also the loin that runs along side the spine on the back of the animal. Those are accessed once the hide is off. This is what you got back from the butcher.

Did you get your deer back? Maybe, maybe not.

Processing your own deer is the way to go. We really take our time when we do it and get an amazing amount of meat by carefully trimming everything: the neck, shoulders, brisket, etc. All of this great meat goes into grind or chunked up for stew meat.

Washburn

"As the light grows dimmer and the trail begins to fade, my sweetest dreams are those of yesteryear, at deer camp."

As far as the loins...terminology varies from region to region but there are backstraps and loins.

The ones you removed are what I call backstraps; you removed them from inside the carcass. There is also the loin that runs along side the spine on the back of the animal. Those are accessed once the hide is off. This is what you got back from the butcher.

Washburn, you are correct about terminology being different from region to region. To me, the tenderloins are the smaller cut of meat inside the carcass....and the long strip along the spine (accessed once the hide is off) is the backstrap / chop.

Like Patriot, I've processed my own deer my whole life. For a while, I took some trimmings to a processor to be made into venison sticks, but that's so expensive I don't do it any more. I bought a dehydrator, and make my own jerky instead.

I've heard this whole issue of how much meat you should get back from the butcher so many times I just about tune it out. So many people think a deer is much bigger than it really is. They'll say, "I took a 140 pound deer in and got only 40 pounds back!" Some people even believe the butcher is skimming the best meat for themselves. I think that's nonsense.

To begin with, most people imagine the weight of a deer to be much more than it really is. Then, the end result of butchering varies a lot, depending on the method the butcher uses. If he is saw-happy, and cuts the chops and steaks with bone in, then obviously you'll get more poundage. It possible also to use a saw on the front quarters and the ribs (if you care for that kind of cut), and up goes the weight again.

I weighed the head and hide of a 120 pound (field-dressed) buck this year, and it came in at 25 pounds. Take the legs off, and there goes a few more pounds. We're down to about 90. The trimmed rib cage leaves another 25 pounds of waste. The remaining bones from the pelvis, back legs, front legs and neck quickly add up. Don't forget to consider the meat that is bloodshot.

Results may vary, but as far as boned-out meat goes, it takes a pretty big deer to get 50 pounds of meat. Venison costs plenty to begin with. I like saving the cost of processing for how little you actually get.

Steve

When the Everyday Hunter isn't hunting, he's thinking about hunting, talking about hunting, dreaming about hunting, writing about hunting, or wishing he were hunting.

I've processed a lot of deer in my life (average about 6 per year these days).

Typically and approximately, I get 15-25 pounds from a fawn, 30 pounds off a yearling doe, 35 pounds off a yearling buck. 2.5 year old does will get me close to 40 pounds. A "big" doe will yield 40-45 pounds. Large bucks will get 50+.

The largest doe I ever processed yielded 46 pounds of pure venision goodness.

The figures above include edible meat. Of course, there are a lot of variables, but that's what I have observed.

We have started the last 3 or 4 years now to cut our own deer up unless we are in a time crunch, and then we bring it in. I do know exactly what you speak of though...Sometimes I'm perplexed at the small amount you get back. But, what do you do, except for cut it up yourself or try another processor?